Military Vehicles

The Vehicle

Every armed force in World War II used civilian automobiles as transportation for "important" people. There were American Dodges, Buicks, and Fords. The British used Bentleys and Austin. The Germans used Opels and Horches. Brengun doesn't specify which model of automobile this kit represents, but it's obviously a "luxury" car, with a hard top and 4 doors. It's definitely nicer than Hans-Joachim Marseille's Kubelwagen.

The Kit

You get two resin staff cars in the kit.
There is a PE fret an instruction sheet, and a small decal sheet with license plates for two cars.

Assembly

There really isn't any assembly to this kit. I removed the pour block from the connectors at the bottom of the car, and then cut these connectors off of the bottom of the car.

Introduction

I won't go into the history of the Valentine Tank because each modeler, I'm sure, does his own research before beginning the build. But, what I found interesting was the different opinions as to how the Valentine got its name. One reference implies that the name came from the middle name of Sir John Carden, the designer of the A9 and A10 which were prototypes of the Valentine. Another reference article states that the name came from an acronym of the designer. (Vickers Armstrong Limited Engineers Newcastle-upon-Tyne). Even other references imply that the name came from the date it was introduced to the Army of which was Valentine's Day, February 14th, 1938. Whatever the reason for the name, the Valentine and its variations continued to be used. As to accuracy of the model, it does appear to be very accurate when compared to some scale line drawings.

The Bussing-NAG 4.5 ton truck was manufactured for the Wehrmacht and Luftwaffe between 1942 & 1945. The truck was adapted for many uses including cargo, troop carrier, artillery prime mover, flak carriage, and even a version that could run on railroad tracks. This particular version of the Bussing Nag was fitted with a Bilstein 3 ton crane which could be used to lift engines and change tank gun barrels. After 1943, the Bussing-NAG with 3 ton Bilstein crane was designated Kfz. 100.

The Bussing-NAG was first issued by AFV Club in 2012 as a cargo truck, again in 2014 with new parts, and this version in 2015 with the Bilstein Crane.

At the 2015 Russian Army May Day Victory parade, the world got its first official view of Russia's latest family of armored fighting vehicles. This new series of vehicles presented a new doctrine for Russian armament, design and ultimately survivability by creating a modular system to work across multiple platforms similar to what the U.S. Army attempted with their Future Combat Systems. The "Bumerang" is the design of Russia's newest addition to the BTR family, intended to replace the BTR-80 and BTR-82 designs.

The Bumerang more closely resembles Western LAVs, rather than the BTR systems. The engine has been moved to the front, it has a v-shaped hull to make it more mine-resistant, instead of exiting the vehicle through the sides of the vehicle, as was the case with the BTR, troops exit the rear, and the Bumerang features an unmanned turret.